Abstract
Since the late 1970s, producers of sweeteners based on steviol glycosides—often colloquially referred to as Stevia—have made efforts to enter the European market (Kienle 2011, 71–72). For a long time they have been trying this in vain, for the EU has been unwilling to approve the use of steviol glycosides as a food additive. Remarkably, the EU was not isolated with its skeptical stance on these substances. Also at the international level, steviol glycosides were only recognized as safe products for the first time in 2004 (Penner et al. 2004, 6). In 2011, however, the EU changed its stance on this issue fundamentally and approved the placing on the market and use of steviol glycosides as a sweetener in foodstuffs and beverages. Due to this U-turn, the regulation of steviol glycosides represents an instructive case.
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Notes
- 1.
The SCF was endowed with the task of verifying the safety of food additives from 1974 to March 2003. Since April 2003, this has been the responsibility of the EFSA (Mortensen 2006, p. 106).
- 2.
For an overview of the controversial political process accompanying the adoption of Council Directive 94/35/EC, see Earnshaw and Judge (1993).
- 3.
For a concise overview of the authorization procedures under Regulation (EC) No 258/97, see Coppens et al. (2006, pp. 69–71). See also Regulation (EC) No 1331/2008 establishing a common authorization procedure for food additives.
- 4.
Note that the EU never forbade the use of stevia-based products for other purposes than being added to beverages and foodstuffs.
- 5.
In 2011, when the French authorization had to be renewed, the Commission even allowed the continued use of rebaudioside A in advance of the EU approval.
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Tosun, J. (2013). Stevia-Based Sweeteners as a Food Additive. In: Risk Regulation in Europe. SpringerBriefs in Political Science, vol 3. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-1984-6_7
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